Dear Friends of English L’Abri,
Warm greetings from all of us at the Manor as we finish another year here and take some time in the break to work, to rest, and to give thanks for the sturdy hope that the advent of Christ into the world brings us.
Our autumn term finished around the start of December and I personally found it to be a really encouraging term. As always, the range of personalities, questions, struggles and backgrounds was diverse and wonderful. There was also a good proportion of people this term with a real desire to ask honest questions, with the ability to discuss robustly and also sensitively and just the desire to learn and move forward together. I really loved the lunch discussions and film discussions that I led this term as a result of this. I found myself carrying on film discussions into the front hall late at night or picking up lunch discussion conversations the next day in the library. It was wonderful!
It is a beautiful thing to see the Grace of God in not only who He brings to the Manor but in the mix of people he calls together and uses to be a blessing to each other. Other students came here and found it almost impossible to utter a single word at lunch discussions but the gift they were to the community and the reasons God had for bringing them here are just as sure.
So that is a taste of last term. It was hard to say goodbye to such precious people. We trust them to God, reminding ourselves that He had them in His hands long before we met them here and He goes with them as they leave.
We also said goodbye to our dear colleagues Josue and Lili Reichow and their son Benja just after term finished. They came here seven years ago ( not expecting to stay that long!) and have served the Lord and the students faithfully with their many gifts. They have always had a desire to see a L’Abri work in the south of Brazil where they are from and this year they felt The Lord calling them back. Many things happened along the way to encourage both them and us that the Lord's hand is in their decision to return, not least the offer of someone to rent a house suitable for them to start a fledgling L’Abri work. Josue has been offered a part time job as they begin things and there is support from a thriving ‘friends of L’Abri’ group that they began before they left for England. For all these things we are thankful and excited but our hearts are also heavy as we will miss their comradeship and the irreplaceable gift of themselves that they gave to us and to the work. Please pray for us as we cover much of the work between us that they would have done and wait on The Lord to send the people He calls to join us in this work.
Another farewell was to our dear friend Cynthia Kim, whose funeral was held in London on the 1st of December. Jim gave the sermon and many were there to give thanks for her life. Cynthia and Kim were workers with Ranald and Susan Macaulay in the earliest days of English L’Abri. I often heard the story of how they were the first people to sleep here(-on a mattress on the floor in the freezing cold) after the keys for the manor were handed over. Cynthia was such a faithful encouragement to the work of L’Abri and those who work here for so many years. We will miss her joy and her constant witness to the goodness of the Lord but we rejoice that she is with Him now.
In the midst of goodbyes, it is a great encouragement to welcome Grace Pepper to the manor in January as a short term worker. Grace is from the U.S. and has been a helper here more than once. She is a gentle, helpful presence with a heart for hospitality and beauty among many other gifts. Her willingness to join us in the work here is a gift at a time when it feels like there are so few of us. It will be a wonderful blessing to have her in the Top flat, mainly focusing on the vital work of hospitality, meals and practical support of the work here. Pray for her as she transitions to a new country and new work for the next while.
We are also very thankful for the presence of the Lowe family with us. James, Imogen and their children (Rose, Malachi, Koa and Aurelia) are awaiting a visa to go to the Rochester L’Abri as short term workers. This has proved a much longer wait than expected so they joined us last term as short term workers. We are so thankful for the warmth of their hospitality and their willingness to help out with anything needed. So far it looks like they may stay with us next term as they continue to await their visa. It is hard to be in limbo for so long, so please pray for them, although in the meantime we are so glad of their presence and help here!
In other news..
Houston and Debbie Coley who work in film (and met here) wanted to make a documentary about life at L’Abri. With much prayer we said yes to this, so they stayed and filmed in the summer term. One of their desires is to use the medium of film to present in a unique way some of the ideas and practices of L’Abri and how those play out in community life here. The hope would be that in some way this could be an inspiration for the church and others as well as a visual explanation of some of the things they and others have found helpful here.
Pray for them as they edit the documentary; that helpful and true ideas could come across and be a blessing to many as a result. They are both very talented and I am thankful for the quality and beauty of their art.
Andrew Fellows, the former director here at English L’Abri had a book launch here during the term for his book “Smuggling Jesus Back Into The Church” and Marsh is working on the final edit for his book “ Rumours Of A Better Country” which will also appear via IVP in October 2023.
We are thinking about more creative, environmentally friendly, and cost effective ways to heat and provide power for the manor at the moment. Joel and Jim are currently looking into ideas for that after the encouragement of receiving two substantial gifts towards it this year.
Christmas is only a few days away and I have had a line from the psalms going through my mind:
“ Light dawns in the darkness for the upright” Ps 112v4
I have been thinking about the presence not of light but of darkness at christmas. Of how the expectation of light, goodness, joy and celebration makes the presence of struggle and darkness in the midst of it all that much more painful and even confusing. To long for a holiday and feel unable to rest, to have the first Christmas without a loved one, to be alone at Christmas or to feel unable to cope with busyness, family tensions and broken relationships.
So many things to be thankful for and so many things to mourn, all mixed together.
‘Light dawns in the darkness for the upright’, it is not traditionally a ‘Christmas’ verse but I have found it encouraging these last few days. Christ is the one who makes us upright and so we can cling to this promise of light; light in the past when He came, light in my current darknesses and a great future light, when things will be restored to the way they should be.
In some strange way I have been thankful for the sorrows and failures in my own life this Christmas. When I have been willing to sit for a moment with the reality of the darkness, my awareness of the need for the Christ child’s birth and my joy that His light has dawned in my life is greater and sharper than in easier times. When times are dark, I look much more expectantly for His promised light.
So God bless you all this Christmas with deep joy and eyes to see Christ's faithful light in the darkness. We are so thankful for your support and prayers for the work here.
With love and on behalf of us all at the Manor,
Catherine Barricklow